


this is a song for a scribbled out name (and my love keeps writing again and again)

by aletterinthenameofsanity



Series: this could be good (love is patient, love is kind) [19]
Category: Power Rangers, Power Rangers Dino Charge, Power Rangers Ninja Steel
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Amnesia, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hugs, I don't have an otp, M/M, Memory Alteration, Memory Loss, Polyamory, Post-Canon for Dino Charge, Rare Pairings, SOMEONE FUCKING STOP ME, Secret Identity, What is this?, also i had to wait until i posted chapter 9 to post this, also this happens after the end of "i loved you first", and Heckyl makes a more thematically compelling Silver, changes will be explained further within, i have a flock of one-person inflatables, in which i could really give less than a shit about Zenowing, not even an armada of strong ships, not for Ninja Steel, once again being the founder of a ship tag, second season of dino charge went way different, so FINALLY, the fifth?, the fourth?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-15
Updated: 2019-02-15
Packaged: 2019-10-20 05:35:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17616485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aletterinthenameofsanity/pseuds/aletterinthenameofsanity
Summary: First Heckyl stops responding.It doesn’t look like he’s going to say anything anytime soon,Aiden writes at the three week mark, but Matt can’t give up hope. They’ve always known that Heckyl was going to have a hard time knowing them, as he's from another planet and all, but they never thought he'd stop talking to them.Then Levi stops responding, and Matt’s already broken heart shatters.-Heckyl has spent three hundred years sharing a body and mind with a monster, and just as long staring at the bare skin on his arm whenever he’s in humanoid form.He’s from a completely different planet to Matt and Aiden, and he’s already known that it would be questionable if he would ever get to meet them with the war, but he had always had some hope.And then he’d touched that gem, and the words had gotten wiped from his skin and Sentai 6 had been wiped from the face of the universe.-The memories come pouring in, and-Levi has a brother. Brody is his brother. He is Levi Weston, but he is also Aiden Romero, and oh god, he has a brother.His arm pricks, and he realizes- his Soulmates. Matt. Heckyl.





	this is a song for a scribbled out name (and my love keeps writing again and again)

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from "Falling" from Florence + the Machine. I have been waiting to use this title on a fic in this series for so long, and the occasion has finally come!
> 
> Also, this was mostly written before any of the other fics in this series, so the writing's not as good as more recent works. It's still decent- otherwise, I wouldn't have posted it- but it's not a shining example of writing like some of these fics. Hope you all still enjoy!

_A song and a smile from someone I cared about could be enough to distract me from all that darkness, if only for a little while._

**-Ransom Riggs**

 

First Heckyl stops responding.

 _It doesn’t look like he’s going to say anything anytime soon,_ Aiden writes at the three week mark, but Matt can’t give up hope. They’ve always known that Heckyl was going to have a hard time knowing them, as he's from another planet and all, but they never thought he'd stop talking to them.

-

They say that if your Soulmate doesn’t write for more than a month, there is a 95% chance of them being dead, and it’s been two months.

Matt’s brother Riley has always been one for statistics. Matt isn't. 

He keeps writing, keeps praying, keeps hoping for a response from his Soulmate. Heckyl is an impossible man, an alien who managed to find ink in a shipwrecked space ship on a wartorn planet. He has fought armies, spied on warlords, saved families from death. If anyone can return after disappearing for months, then it's Heckyl.

-

Another month passes, and another, and Riley leaves to go to the Dinosaur Museum.

"Chase is there," he says, an apology in his eyes, "I've gotta go meet him."

Matt thinks of Heckyl, who isn't writing, and Aiden, who hasn't yet suggested meeting despite the fact that he can't be a day under twenty years old.

Matt gives his little brother a smile. "Good luck. Hope he can keep up with you."

-

Life continues on- Aiden writes at strange hours, working around some kind of schedule Matt can't quite figure out, and Heckyl doesn't write at all. Matt takes care of the ranch and calls Riley at least once every two-three weeks, keeping updated on the goings-on at the Museum, his relationship with Chase, and making sure he stays safe with all the alien invasions.

Life's not the best it could be, but it's going pretty okay considering everything that's happened.

-

Then Aiden stops responding, and Matt’s already cracked heart shatters.

* * *

Heckyl has spent thousands of years sharing a body and mind with a monster, and just as long staring at the bare skin on his arm whenever he’s in humanoid form.

He’s from a completely different planet to Matt and Aiden, and he’s already known that it would be questionable if he would ever get to meet them with the war, but he had always had some hope. His humans were such wonderful, optimistic things, constantly giving reassurances that someday the war would end, and they kept him sane in the midst of chaos.

(Before the war he'd been made fun of for the words on his wrist, how he had gotten so attached to these little creatures from a Level 4 planet, but once the war had broken out, it had been what kept him going. He had to save his planet, and he had to keep alive for his Soulmates.)

And then he’d touched that gem, and the words had gotten wiped from his skin and Sentai 6 had been wiped from the face of the universe. He had been sent into the past, without his Soulmates and with Snide invading his every thought. It had taken every part of his strength to just remember Matt and Aiden, much less exert any control over his actions. Even when in humanoid form, Snide's thoughts would fill his brain and twist his words, taking Heckyl's already morally grey cunning and flipping it all the way to world domination. He fought the Rangers, trying to get the Energems from them. Snide and Lord Arcanon wanted the power that the Energems could give them. Heckyl's cunning and cleverness, previously used to fight Lord Arcanon, had been used to help the very creatures he had fought gain more power.

And then Snide separates the two of them into two separate bodies, saying that he no longer has a use for Heckyl, and for the first time in thousands of years he can see his Marks.

(Well, they're only in blue, not red too, but Heckyl is a bit distracted to take note of that. He has to figure out a way to trick his way out of his cell and the spaceship, and since the ship is wrecked once he escapes he'll be on Earth.)

Heckyl can't help but feel a bit excited- he is no longer on Sentai 6. He is finally on Earth, the planet of Soulmates. Somewhere down there are Matt and Aiden. He actually has a chance of finally meeting them, once he gets out.

-

 _Matt_? he asks as soon as he can get a pen on Earth,  _Aiden?_ and the response is near instantaneous.

 _Oh thank_ _god you're alive,_ Matt writes, and then, a moment later:  _Aiden hasn't responded in half a year._

The words are like a blow to the chest. Aiden went missing and Heckyl wasn't there for Matt?

 _Tell me everything,_ Heckyl says, and Matt slowly starts to explain.

- 

Then Heckyl bonds with the Silver Energem, because of course he can't escape the fucking Power Rangers. One selfless act is now tying him down to protecting the Earth, and the only reason he decides to stay is because he knows that Matt (and Aiden, though the thought of him hurts at the moment) would want his planet protected as Heckyl failed to protect Sentai 6.

So Heckyl fights alongside the Power Rangers while he slowly rebuilds his relationship with Matt. Matt's belief in the Soulmarks has been severely shaken, and Heckyl may not be the most morally good person but he cares a lot about Aiden and Matt. In between battles, he carefully builds Matt's faith in them back up.

He doesn't get very attached to any of the other Rangers. There are only two humans that he really cares about, and neither of them are around him. He forms a passing respect for them as warriors, but all of them have their issues that keep him from actually admiring them- Ivan is a well-trained swordsman, though his honor code is too rigid; Kendall develops their weaponry, but she is too naive; Shelby is intelligent, but is too trusting; Riley is creative, but he cares too little about his own life; Koda is strong, but lacks communication skills; Chase is inventive in battle, but too reckless; Tyler is a good leader, but doubts himself; Phillip is well-trained, but distant; Kaylee is spirited, but doesn't work very well with others. None of them are close enough to him that he'd call them his friends.

But that's okay, because all he cares about is defending Matt and Aiden's world, keeping their world from the same fate as his own. 

- 

Then Ms. Morgan says that there are signs of the Ankylo Zord near Riley's ranch, and Heckyl somehow gets picked to help investigate. He's not exactly sure how, as he's not exactly the most diplomatic of the Rangers- his skills in war had been spying and plotting and strategy, not peacekeeping- but he grumbles a bit and then follows along.

And there at the bus stop, for the first time, he comes face to face with Riley's older brother.

"Matt," Riley says as they get off the bus, and Heckyl's ears perk up at the name. Sure, it's probably nothing, but the name itself is one he has grown attached to. "I want to introduce you to my Soulmates, Ivan and Chase."

"I thought you only had one Soulmate?" Matt asks, and Sir Ivan's lips purse.

"I found another one," Riley says, voice light, "It's a long story, but how we got here isn't important."

Matt shrugs. "Matt Griffin," he says, reaching out a hand to shake, and one of Heckyl's two hearts stops beating. What the fuck did he just say?

"And this is Heckyl," Riley says, turning to Heckyl, and Heckyl watches as Matt's face drains of color.

"Matt?" Heckyl says, voice shaking for the first time in his life.

"Heck?" Matt asks, and when Heckyl nods he finds himself wrapped in a hug by Matt, who buries his face in Heckyl's neck with a small sob.

"You're really here," Matt says, "I never thought I'd get to meet you in real life."

"To be completely honest," Heckyl says, because with Matt he's never known how to be anything but, "I didn't think I would either." 

"What is happening, Sir Riley?" Heckyl hears Sir Ivan ask, and hears someone's 'shh.'

"I think Heckyl is one of my brother's Soulmates," Riley says.

"You think?" Chase hisses, "I know that face. You  _knew,_ didn't you?"

Heckyl's brow furrows and he leans back from Matt. The Green Ranger  _knew_ who Matt and Heckyl were to each other and didn't say? 

"Okay," Riley says with a shrug, "Maybe I had a bit of an inkling as to who Matt's Soulmate is." His gaze focuses on Heckyl, sharp like he has never witnessed it on the Green Ranger. "But I wasn't going to introduce everyone until I was sure he wouldn't hurt Matt."

Alright, that's an explanation that Heckyl can respect. Calculation, examination, distrust- he knows the value of those traits.

But that does beg a question. He hasn't been very polite to Riley in his time- what on earth could he have done to convince him of his sincerity? What could have made the Green Ranger trust Heckyl with his brother?

Heckyl raises an eyebrow. "And how did I convince you of that?"

"Ivan convinced me," Riley says simply, and the Gold Ranger smiles. Well, that's a bit unexpected. Sir Ivan convinced Riley to let Heckyl and Matt meet?

"Ivan convinced you?" Matt asks, looking to the Golden Ranger. "Well, I approve of your Soulmate."

Chase snorts. "It was that easy?"

"If he got Riley to bring me Heckyl, then yes," Matt says, and Heckyl is even more in love than this man than he thought he was. Then Matt looks back to Heckyl. "But how did you all meet? Last I heard, you'd just moved into an apartment and gotten a job at a cafe."

"Well, it's a pretty long story," Riley says, but Heckyl's not so certain.

Heckyl is familiar with the secrecy policy that the Dino Charge Rangers are under- he made sure to interrogate Miss Morgan about all of the team's rules and policies when he first joined- and he knows that there is a very careful exception carved out for Soulmates when it comes to talking about being Rangers.

(After all, it would be slightly hypocritical for Miss Morgan to prohibit the sharing of information after she told her Soulmates everything.)

"Have you heard of the Dino Charge Power Rangers?" Heckyl asks, and Matt raises an eyebrow.

"Of course I do. They hit the news every week and, you know, you said that they're the reason why you go to Earth-" Heckyl holds up his silver Energem, curling a finger around it slightly to make it glow, and Matt's jaw drops. "You fucker. You're a Power Ranger?"

"And so are we," Riley says, and Matt turns to see his brother and his Soulmates holding up their Energems. His eyes, if it's possible, go even wider,a nd Heckyl nearly laughs at his comical expression.

"There's no fucking way my  _little brother_ is a Ranger," he says.

"Believe it, mate," Chase says, that characteristic smug grin on his face.

"So you're telling me that one of my Soulmates and my brother and _both_ of his Soulmates are Power Rangers?" Matt says, and the spark of humor inside of Heckyl's chest diminishes a little. _One_ of his Soulmates- Aiden's still out there somewhere.

"That's exactly what we're telling you, Matt," Riley says, "And speaking of which, we're kinda here for something other than just introducing the two of you."

As Riley explains, leading them all away from the bus stop and toward the ranch, Matt laces one of his hands with Heckyl's.

"Now we just have to find Aiden," Matt says quietly into Heckyl's ear, trying not to interrupt his brother. Heckyl rarely has that much self-restraint when it comes to Riley's rambling, but he thinks he can probably be more polite if it's for Matt's sake.

Heckyl nods. "I just hope that wherever he is, he's okay."

* * *

Energy sears through Levi’s mind and his legs turn to jelly. Preston and Calvin help him up and away from the robot corpse, away from the wreckage of Brody's childhood dreams.

“Levi,” Preston says as the robot explodes, “You okay?” But Levi only has eyes for Brody, standing in front of him, half and hour and ten years older than the last time he laid eyes on him.

Brody stands there, defeat in his posture. “I thought he was my brother. He was just one of Galvanax’s robots.”

“No,” Levi says, the memories pouring in and making his brain throb. “He wasn’t your brother. I caught him trying to take the Ninja Steel. I'm sorry, Brody."

Levi's thoughts are swimming. Levi has a brother.  _Brody_ is his brother. He is Levi Weston, but he is also Aiden Romero, and oh god, his brother was held as a slave for the past decade.

His arm pricks, and he looks down to find-

_Oh my god._

There is a doodle of a cow in blue ink on his skin, and he knows he didn’t write it there.

His Soulmates. Matt. Heckyl. 

How long has it been since he has seen their Marks on his skin? How long has it been since he even  _knew_  he had Soulmates?

Oh no,  _Matt_ \- Heckyl hadn’t been writing by the time Aiden’s memories were stolen and his Soulbond repressed beneath his skin, where the Marks couldn't reach. How long has Matt had to go without Soulmarks on his skin?

Shit, shit,  _shit_. 

"What did that robot do to you?" Preston asks, voice concerned, and Levi looks up at his brother's Soulmate. "We all saw the green light enter your body."

Levi has to talk to Brody now, tell him what he’s remembered- but as soon as he gets a chance, he needs to get his hands on a pen.

“Brody,” Levi says, "I need to talk to you about Aiden." It feels so strange to say his name, now that he knows it is his own.

Brody looks up at him with watery eyes. "Yeah, Levi?"

"I-" His voice fails him for a moment, now that he's looking at the brother he's been searching for for ten years. "I'm Aiden Romero. I just got my memories back."

Brody's jaw drops. "What?"

And then Levi explains his story and how he was kidnapped, what happened to him on Madame Odious' ship, and how he became the Gold Ranger. He explains how he's spent the last ten years searching and trying to find Brody, how he'd become a music star both out of love for the craft and in trying to find a way to free up time to travel and look for Brody, and even briefly mentioning how Matt and Heckyl had been the only things keeping him sane during the search for Brody.

By the moment he ends his story by saying, "And I'm so glad to finally see you again, little brother," Brody is smiling brilliantly, a few tears escaping his eyes. A few moments later, Brody is pulling Levi into a hug, and ten years worth of searching are over.

"Looks like you have a new brother-in-law," Sarah says to Preston, and the magician smiles.

"More importantly, Brody really did find Aiden," Preston says, and Levi thinks about the fact that Preston spent ten years wondering where Brody was himself. He's heard a sanitized, clearly summarized version of the years Brody and Preston spent without each other, but his brain had kind of glossed over the nastier emotions involved in the story. Now that he remembers the pain of the waiting, the searching, the worrying, he relates a bit harder to Preston than he did before.

And speaking of Preston and him finally getting to meet Brody after years of silence- Levi looks at Preston and his Marks that match Brody's. He wants that for himself, wants to meet Matt and Heckyl. He doesn't know what's happening with Heckyl, but he definitely doesn't want to wait any longer to talk to and meet Matt. Levi's found Brody- he can't think of any reasons why he should prolong meeting Matt any longer.

“Brody,” he says, breaking away from the hug, “If you don’t mind- can I borrow your pen?”

“Of course, brother,” Brody says, smile brilliant, and Levi gets the feeling that he’s not going to stop using the word ‘brother’ anytime soon. He’s not protesting, though- he has spent ten years searching for Brody. He's pretty sure he's going to develop the same problem himself.

 _Matt,_ Levi writes small along his wrist,  _Are you there? A lot has happened in the past year, and I need to talk._

Then, instead of Matt’s blue ink, he finds a strange gray ink working itself into the skin underneath of his question.

 _Aiden?_ Familiar handwriting asks, and Levi goes pale.  _You're alive._

 _Heckyl?_ He writes underneath.  _You stopped writing. I thought you were dead._

 _Yeah,_ Matt’s blue Marks finally answer,  _It’s a long story. But you’re finally back!_

 _How far away from California are you?_ Heckyl asks, handwriting almost reaching Levi’s elbow, and Levi blinks. California? Heckyl’s from another planet. What the hell could he be doing in California?

_Where in California?_

_About an hour north of Amber Beach,_ comes Matt’s ink, and fuck, that must mean that they’re together. What has Levi missed in his time without memories?

 _Where the Dino Charge Power Rangers are from?_ Levi writes on the back of his hand.

 _Yes,_ Heckyl says after a short pause, followed by Matt scribbling out an address on his upper arm. Levi grabs his phone out of his pocket, pulls up Google Maps, and inserts the address. It's just about two and a half hours from here.

 _I'll see you in three hours max,_ Levi writes, and hands the pen back to Brody.

"I know it's a lot to process," Levi says, "But if you guys don't mind, I've got some Soulmates to meet."

He glances at all of his teammates' faces- all of their opinions matter to him- and their approving smiles, but to be honest, the only opinion that would really keep him from going is Brody's.

And Brody's one of the kindest people Levi knows, so he just nods with a proud smile and says, "Go find them, brother."

Levi tips his hat to his brother, gives him one last squeeze to the shoulder, and leaves the base for his car.

-

When he arrives at his destination, the first thing Levi notices is the fact that his cowboy hat will fight right in. Matt's address is that of a ranch in the middle of the country, complete with a barn, stables, and a pig pen.

He parks his car in what seems to be a driveway of sorts before practically jumping out and heading down a dirt path toward the house and barn. 

“Holy shit!” a young man wearing a black shirt shouts in what sounds like a New Zealand accent, “Levi Weston is here!”

“Sir Chase?” asks an accented voice, and Levi pinpoints it as a taller man in an old-fashioned white shirt who is working just a little further down the field. “Who is Levi Weston?”

The apparently named Sir Chase smiles at the man in white. "He plays music, love."

The white-shirted farmhand walks up to Sir Chase and Levi can see that he's smiling. "He plays music? How wondrous!"

As fascinating as this all is, though, Levi has greater priorities on his mind. “Sorry to bother you,” he says, offering up his nicest meeting-the-fans-smile, “But I'm looking for Matt Griffin?”

“You know Aiden Romero?” Sir Chase asks, and apparently Matt has filled in  _all_ of the farmhands on the fact that he's expecting his Soulmate. Levi's not judging, though- he  _did_ basically do the same thing with his teammates.

“It's a long story,” Levi says, eyes finally catching on the gems dangling around their necks. Gold for the man in white and black for the man in black. At first he just thinks it's an interesting coincidence, especially as they both have their sleeves rolled up and they have matching Marks, but then he thinks about the Ranger team that just stopped their battles in Amber Beach, a team that carried a Gold and a Black Ranger in their ranks. 

Levi's never been the smartest guy in the world- that privilege belongs to Heckyl, cunning war hero and spy that he is- but he knows about secret identities and color coordinating outfits. He remembers that Matt's brother left for the Amber Beach Dino Museum just a few months before Levi became the Gold Ranger. 

(Levi's only question is how Matt knows the Power Rangers, or at least has somehow ended up with two men who just  _happen_ to be Power Rangers working at the ranch he lives at.)

A man in a green plaid shirt comes out of the stables, and Levi's gaze falls on the yet another gem hanging around his neck, but this one is green. If he wasn't convinced before, he is now. “Guys, what's the commotion?”

The man who has to be another Gold Ranger answers. “Sir Chase says a Levi Weston is here, and Levi Weston says he is looking for Matt.”

“Levi Weston the country singer?” The Green Ranger asks, and Sir Chase nods. "Aiden Romero knows Levi Weston?"

“And Matt knows Power Rangers?” Levi asks, and all three boys freeze before turning to look at him, eyes wide.

“How do you know we were Power Rangers?” Sir Chase asks, eyes narrowed in suspicion, and Levi gestures to the gems around their necks.

“You're not exactly hiding it,” he says, and the boys all glance down. 

Then the door to the main house opens and two men come out. One of them looks like a stereotypical cowboy- plaid shirt, cowboy hat, and all- while the other has blue highlights in his hair and is wearing a black button down and jeans with an odd, almost steampunk-like set of googles wrapped around his hair...and he also has a silver gem hanging around his neck.

The breath leaves Levi's lungs. Could they be…?

Their gazes focus on him, and while the cowboy's eyes go wide, the Silver Ranger seems not to recognize him. If these are Matt and Heckyl, then it would make sense. Matt would recognize a country music star- Heckyl, an alien, would not.

"Levi Weston?" Matt- Levi prays he is, at least- asks, confusion clear. "Do you know Aiden?"

"More importantly, Levi Weston knows about the Power Rangers," the Gold Ranger says, and Matt raises an eyebrow.

" _And_  he knows Aiden," the kid in the green shirt says.

“I have a feeling you're gonna understand what happened to me a little better than I thought,” Levi mutters, looking at the silver gem around Heckyl's neck.

“Okay,” Sir Chase says, “So how the fuck does some country music star know Power Rangers well enough to identify us so quickly?”

No better time than the present, Levi guesses, and nothing better than a dramatic first impression. He summons the gold ninja star and holds it up, letting all the men get a glimpse at it, before summoning his morpher and shouting, “Gold Ninja Power Ranger! Ninja Spin!” and morphing into the Gold Ranger.

“Holy shit!” The Green Ranger says, “Levi Weston is both a country music superstar  _and_ a Gold Ranger?”

"More importantly," Heckyl says, having next to no interest in the goings on of humans, and Levi grins at the almost bored expression on his Soulmate's face. "How does this "superstar" know Aiden?" He looks at Matt, a slightly worried look on his face. "He should have been here by now." 

Levi demorphs and Matt and Heckyl both glance to him, eyebrows raised in question.

"A year ago, right after I was first chosen as the Gold Ranger, I was kidnapped by monsters and help captive for almost a week. I had my memories nearly entirely wiped, and when I returned to earth all I knew was that I was a country music star and that I was the Gold Ranger. I spent about six months fighting on my own before getting captured by Madame Odious and her minions, who tried to drain the Gold Ninja star and take my memories. I escaped and made my way to the team. About two months ago, I met the rest of the Ninja Steel Rangers, led by their Red Ranger Brody Romero." He nearly smiles at his brother's name- the memories of their childhood together are so vivid in his mind now- but then he sees Heckyl and Matt's eyes widen. Levi's Soulmates are not idiots- Heckyl most especially- and he knows they recognize his brother's name. "Brody had escaped from the ship of an alien named Galvanax, where he had been made a slave for the past ten years. I have fought alongside them for the past few months, combating Galvanax's forces."

"Last week, a man turned up claiming to be Aiden Romero, Brody's older brother," and if Brody's name got a shift in expression before, Aiden's name ( _his_ name) definitely gets one. Matt grabs for Heckyl's hand, expression going excited. "But there was something off about him. He was constantly asking where our base was, where the Ninja Steel was, if he could train with us, etc. Today, Aiden turned on me and I fought him. He ended up revealed as an android copy with Aiden's stolen memories, and our team destroyed him."

Matt's expression is devastated. "Do you know where Aiden really is?"

Heckyl, on the other hand, seems to have already put the pieces together. His voice is quiet when he asks, "Did you get your memories back?"

Levi nods. "Three hours ago, I got my memories back."

Matt's eyes go wide and he comes running off the porch to Levi, dragging Heckyl by the hand behind him. They end up directly in front of Levi, with both of them looking him in the eyes. Heckyl's expression is more curious, while Matt's eyes are almost watering with emotion.

"Aiden?" Matt whispers, and Levi nods.

"Like I said," Levi says, "It's a long story."

"Your Soulmate is a Gold Ranger?" the kid in green says.

"So is yours, Greenie," Heckyl snaps over his shoulder, "Your point?" and Sir Chase just laughs, linking his arm through the Green Ranger's.

"He has you there, Sir Riley," the other Gold Ranger says, and Levi nearly startles. Riley? That would make the Green Ranger Matt's little brother. But who are the other two boys?

"Not to be rude," Levi says, "But do you mind introducing me to your friends?"

Heckyl's expression is kind of priceless when Levi says 'friends'- it's almost like he's caught between acceptance and nausea at the idea that he is friends with the other three men.

Matt, on the other hand, has no such problem. "Green one's my little bro, guy in white is Sir Ivan of Zandar, and the one in the baseball cap is Chase Randall."

"And Riley is the Green Dino Charge Ranger, Ivan is the Gold, and Chase is the Black," Heckyl explains, " _And_ they're his Soulmates."

 Levi's brow furrows as he looks at Riley. "I thought Riley only had one Soulmate."

"Like you said," Matt says, a bit of a grin spreading across his lips. "It's a long story."

"I've got time," Levi says, "My team can survive without me for a little while." 

"How did I end up with two Power Rangers as Soulmates?" Matt asks, smile proud.

Heckyl's smile goes soft and tender when he looks at Matt. "Because you're one of the most wonderful men in the world."

Levi can't wait for the day where he has spent enough time in person with Matt and Heckyl that he'll be able to look at them with that lovestruck, sappy smile on his face.

-

Levi returns back to Summer Cove late that night, a blissful smile on his lips. He's got Soulmates and a brother- could this day possibly get any better?

He texts the entire team when he's a half hour away, and without fail they are all there at the base when he arrives.

He can't help but smile when he sees them all waiting for him. This is what it's like to have friends, to have a team, to have a  _family._ Levi has spent ten of the last eleven years searching for Brody- in the year he lost, he has found not only his brother but a whole group of people who care about him. He has his family now, and he has his Soulmates.

He may spend his days fighting monsters, but he couldn't be any happier than he is now.

He sits down next to Brody, who is curled into Preston's side. Brody's been staying at Preston's house- Soulmates and all- and Levi recognizes the sweater he's wearing as one of Preston's. Levi hopes that one day, after they've defeated Galvanax, he'll be able to live casually with his Soulmates like that.

"Did you find your Soulmates?" Brody asks, and Levi nods.

"What're their names? What're they like?" Sarah asks.

"Do they know you're a Ranger?" Calvin asks. 

"They're from about an hour north of Amber Beach," Levi says, and at this point he's kinda enjoying teasing people with information like this. Watching the recognition in his friend's eyes is rather satisfying, after all.

"Isn't that where the previous Power Ranger team is from?" Preston asks, and Brody raises an eyebrow.

"Previous team? I thought the last team was in Ocean Bluff. The Jungle Fury Rangers?"

Levi's heart breaks a little when he realizes that when Brody was kidnapped- ten years ago- the active team was Jungle Fury. It seems like a complete lifetime ago that Casey Rhodes' team was leading the main fight against monsters.

"There have been four teams since then," Preston informs him, "The Samurai team in Panorama City, the Megaforce team in Harwood County, the first S.P.D. team on the moon, and the Dino Charge team in Amber Beach. Dino Charge's battles stopped just a couple of weeks before Aiden got here, actually."

"Got it," Brody says.

"But yeah, Matt's little brother has been living in Amber Beach for the last year," Levi says, "As have his Soulmates." He takes out his phone and pulls up the photo he took of the six of them- Matt, Heckyl, Riley, Ivan, and Chase. "That's Matt, Heckyl, Matt's brother and his two Soulmates."

"Are the two on either side of you your Soulmates?" Brody asks, and Levi nods.

"They're kinda cute," Preston says, then gives Brody a quick peck on the cheek. "Though not as cute as you, sweetie."

"Wait a minute," Hayley says, and Levi can tell that she's picked up on the same thing he did. "Those gems around their necks, the colors of their shirts- is one of your Soulmates a Power Ranger?"

Levi grins. "Bingo. As are Matt's brother and his two Soulmates."

Brody smiles at the same time that Preston groans. "So being a Ranger is really in the family, isn't it?"

"Looks like it," Levi confirms.

"We're never going to escape," Preston says, though there is a certain humor in his voice that belies his groan.

"But at least there are two Golds," Sarah says, "Everybody loves the extra Rangers the best."

Brody frowns in that not-quite-pouting-but-still-kinda-naive-looking way that he does. "I thought they liked Reds the most."

Preston gives Brody a kiss. "You'd think so, honey, but no. Think about the teams you liked as a kid and the shows you watched- which Rangers did you like the best?"

"Kaz Trent, Red Ranger of the  _Samurai Thunder_ show, Chase Davenport, Aqua Ranger of  _Ninja Run_ _,_ Leo Dooley, Quantum Ranger of  _Time Storm,_ and of the real life teams, the Purple Ranger of Jungle Fury and the Yellow Ranger of Operation Overdrive."

Calvin stares at Brody, eyes wide and almost disbelieving. "That was a detailed and rather long list to be able to list off so fast."

Brody blushes. "I liked Power Rangers as a kid. Like, a lot. And dragons, and wolves, and ninjas, and racecars."

"That explains the liking of the Purple Ranger and Ronnie Robinson," Sarah says with a barely contained grin, "As well as Kaz Trent and Chase Davenport. But Leo Dooley? He was practically useless until Episode 31."

Instead of getting offended, Brody just raises an eyebrow. "How do you know that he developed his light-cannon powers in Episode 31? I didn't even remember that, and I watched that show religiously when I was seven."

"Guess Sarah's as much of a nerd as you are, little brother," Levi says, "If not more so."

Sarah lets out an indignant protest at being called a 'nerd,' but Levi's just focused on the grin on his brother's face as he talks about his childhood. It seems that his time stuck on Galvanax's ship hasn't left too much lasting damage to Brody's bright personality and optimism, and Levi couldn't be happier. The damage done to both of their childhoods was great, but not irrevocable. They can mend the broken family bonds, support each other and love each other like they did as kids.

Levi thinks about Matt and Heckyl's smiles, about the plans they made to meet up next week (barring alien invasions, which have a tendency to happen to Rangers like them), and he finds himself with more hope for the future than he has had for years.

With his brother back and his Soulmates by his side, how could anything go wrong?

-

("So your Soulmate is a country music star and a Gold Ranger," Riley points out as Levi drives away after dinner.

“And the other one is an alien and a Silver Ranger,” Heckyl says, tone practically begging for Riley to argue with him, "Levi's not strange.”

“Heckyl has a point. You're one to talk, little bro,” Matt says, “Your Soulmates are both Power Rangers and one of them's a knight from 800 years ago!"

"Well, this time  _you're_ going to have the fun experience of trying to explain all of this to Ma," Riley says.

"Your mother's gonna love the fact that Matt's Soulmate is a country music star," Chase says with a smug grin, wrapping an arm around Riley's shoulder. 

Ivan smiles. "I do not know what country music is, but having another Gold Ranger in the family is never a bad thing."

"You're just happy that Gold is the only color this family has more than one of," Chase says with a roll of the eyes.

"I would never brag of such a thing," Ivan says, "But I cannot deny that I do not view it as a bad thing."

Riley grabs Ivan's and Chase's hands. "Let's leave the lovebirds to talk and go hang out by ourselves."

"But we can tease your brother-" His words cut off as Ivan kisses his cheek. "Oh, right." Then the two of them follow Riley out, leaving Heckyl and Matt to talk alone.

"So Aiden's alive and so is Brody," Matt says, taking Heckyl's hand and leading him over to the window seat. "Sounds like we're gonna have to have a proper family meeting some time soon." He lets out a small snort. "Seven Rangers in the family, if you include Brody's Soulmate too. Don't know much about the history of Rangers other than what Riley's told me, but that's gotta be a record." Heckyl shrugs. He doesn't know much about Rangers save his own team- though he's going to have to check whatever information Miss Morgan has on Ninja Steel, after all of the new developments. Then Matt continues: "Seems like I'm the only normal one around here."

"You're the only sane one around here, more like," Heckyl says, and Matt smiles. Then Matt leans in and pulls Heckyl into a kiss, and the alien is so glad that the other Rangers are gone. Matt's lips are against his- a tradition of romance that thankfully humans and Sentaians share- and his ex-teammates would probably just ruin the moment that should be reserved for just the two of them and Aiden.

When he feels Matt smile against his lips, warmth fills his chest. Heckyl isn't one for sentiment- far from it- but when it comes to Matt and Aiden, he definitely makes an exception.

He can't wait for more.)


End file.
